Two experts pick their favorites based on color, shape
With their small stature , tremendous assortment , and four - time of year beauty , Nipponese maplesalways put up something to see . Dark , undulate offshoot sometimes crest with snow create a variety of elegant silhouette inwinter . The residuum of the yr , the branches provide a structure on which a slipcover of leaves spreads colours and textures . Lush , new outflow growth emerges , filling the bleak landscape painting with a variety of hues we usually bear in fall . Summerbrings due date — new growth harden off , pinks and yellowness fade while greens and reds deepen . In fall , these Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree fill the garden with a symphony of vividness .
Japanese maple offer unnumberable variations in size of it , shape , andtexture . While nobody knows exactly how many unlike Nipponese maple varieties exist , there are more than 700 unique cultivar in circulation . Selecting the correct one from so many can be overwhelming , especially because nearly all of them are charmers . Though it was difficult to single them out , we have pick out some of our favorite cultivars that are neither too obscure nor too obvious while show a hint of the range one can regain in this group of trees .
Further version :
Pruning Nipponese Maples
Japanese Maples Basics
Acer palmatum and cvs.(AY - sir pal - MAY - tum )
related to species : ThoughAcerpalmatumis the most uncouth , several other coinage , such asA. japonicum , A. sieboldianum , andA. shirasawanum , are considered Japanese maple .
Hardiness : While most Nipponese maple are dauntless in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 to 8 , some are recommended only to Zone 6;Acer sieboldianumcan take Zone 4 . Protect all Japanese maples from the afternoon sun if located in Zone 8 and from biting tip in Zone 4 and the northern surgical incision of Zone 5 .
Conditions : Grow these trees in full sun to fond wraith . They are tolerant when it comes to filth unless planted in a web site with inadequate drain or a gamey pH.
Planting : When possible , flora Japanese maples while dormant . If your tree diagram has already begun to leaf out , hold off until the peril of freeze has passed before planting . In clay land , ascertain right drainage by planting on a slope , or with the tooth root irrupt about 3 in above the land line then mound the earth around it .
Maintenance : Under normal circumstance , established Japanese maple do not need additional watering or feeding . If you decide to add together fertilizer , avoid synthetic choice because maples abhor the saltiness they contain . Prune once every few yr to improve air circulation and to enhance the form .
Pests and diseases : Japanese maple are not prostrate to harm from pest or disease .
Favorite Small-statured Japanese Maples
’Waterfall’ Japanese Maple
USDA Hardiness Zones:5 to 8Height:6 to 8 feetSpring colour : Bright greenSummer Color : GreenFall colour : Red , amber , orange
‘ Waterfall’is a cultivar that frisk super C leaves all springtime and summertime before burst into passionate refinement of yellow and orange in fall . The peak of this 6- to 8 - foot - tall tree is all-inclusive and modest , resulting in a broad , more or less domed wont . It gets its name from the layer of ramification that cascade piano toward the ground . Appropriately enough , ‘ Waterfall ’ is an excellent choice for growing next to a water feature .
‘Mikawa yatsubusa’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8Height:3 to 4 feetSpring Color : Yellow - greenSummer colour : GreenFall colour : atomic number 79 , orangeness , purple
extend to only 3 or 4 fundament marvelous , the dwarf cultivar‘Mikawa yatsubusa’has the good luck charm and passion of a inflexible , diminutive hero from a fantastic taradiddle . Its leaves are big for adwarf , growing to about 2 to 212 inches long and full . This leafage is layer tightly one over the other so that the top leaf unwrap only the tabu edge of the one below . spend most of the class covered in light green , ‘ Mikawa yatsubusa ’ changes to gold , orangish , and royal in autumn .
‘Inaba shidare’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8
Height:6 to 8 feet
springiness coloration : Deep redSummer Color : cryptical red , greenFall Color : Bright red
‘ Inaba shidare’doesn’t wait for fall to colour its foliage . Drapes of finespun , deep red leaves flow across an architectural social system and down to the ground . former summer convey out some unripe , but in fall that color is cast off in favor of a splendid red . ‘ Inaba shidare ’ ordinarily pass 6 to 8 feet in height and spread to a nifty breadth . The increment habit is neat and does n’t necessitate frequent pruning .
Medium-size Japanese Maples
Name:‘Aka shigitatsu sawa’Zones:6 to 8Height:7 to 9 feetSpring Color : Green , pinkish , redSummer Color : Green , pinkish , redFall colour : Red
’ Aka shigitatsu sawa’is another tree with constantly changingcolor . In spring , this variegated cultivar has all the vibrant colours and texture of a strawberry - kiwi charmer . These colors deepen steadily and dramatically during the summer : One week , there may be a lot of green ; the next workweek features a wash of Ag ; the follow week , yellowed slips in . The leaf at long last turns bright red in fall . It raise slowly to about 7 to 9 substructure high and gets quite broad with age .
‘Shin deshojo’ Japanese Maple
Zones:6 to 8Height:10 to 12 feetSpring Color : RedSummer Color : Red , greenFall Color : Red , Orange River
‘ tibia deshojo’changes color with the time of year like a Chamaeleon does with its background signal . The little , palmate leaves emerge a bright pink - redness in outflow . As the leaf turns green in summer , it retains traces of recondite garden pink . Autumn finds the leaf turn back to red . This cultivar ’s form of course becomes a 10- to 12 - foot - improbable haystack , or the tree can be opened up to break its computer architecture through pruning .
‘Seiryu’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8Height:10 to 14 feetSpring Color : Green tiptoe in redSummer Color : Bright greenFall coloring : Red , yellow
‘ Seiryu’is a standout among the eye - catching laceleaf Japanese maples . It retains the ticklish foliage common to this chemical group , but rather of the characteristic mounding habit , ‘ Seiryu ’ stands upright with a spreading canopy , reaching stature of 10 to 14 feet . The intricate form of the leaves provides interesting grain in spring and summertime . But in fall , this cultivar , whose name means “ blue - light-green firedrake , ” explodes into color as private leaves originate a mix of cerise , green , Orange River , and scandalmongering . ‘ Seiryu ’ grows gayly in full sun or bright shade . If you want a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree that retain the upright habit and come down color of this tree diagram but offer a sound texture , try on ‘ Osakazuki ’ ( see the first exposure in this article ) , whose leaves are full than those of ‘ Seiryu ’ .
‘Koto no ito’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8Height:6 to 9 feetSpring Color : Green tint with redSummer Color : GreenFall Color : Yellow , orange , reddish
‘ Koto no ito’may resemble a cheerleader ’s pommy - pommy when it ’s young . eld and unspoilt pruning , however , uncover a more dignified specimen up to 9 feet magniloquent , feature a strong interior architecture that contrast with its fine leaves and out branches . The deep divide foliage is long and thin like fringe . It go forth with crimson tinges before turning to substantial green in summer . In fall , it turn yellow , burn orange , and violent . The leaves on each year ’s new growth are much larger than the rest . ‘ Koto no ito ’ is a durable tree diagram that contribute a unique texture to any setting .
Taller Japanese Maples Trees
‘Sango kaku’ Japanese Maple
Zones:6 to 8Height:18 to 22 feetSpring Color : Bright green edged in redSummer Color : GreenFall people of color : jaundiced , orangeness
‘ Sango kaku’is always exciting to look at , courtesy of its bright red subdivision . This cultivar , whose name means “ coral tower , ” features green leaves that turn from chicken to pumpkin orange in fall . Reaching a ripe height of 18 to 22 foot , ‘ Sango kaku ’ has a growth habit that can get a bit mussy , so it should be snip annually from a young historic period . Plant it where it will have excellent drainage ; it is in particular vulnerable to fungi causing fatal fore disease and can quickly die from it .
‘Aconitifolium’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8Height:15 to 18 feetSpring Color : GreenSummer colour : GreenFall colour : icteric , orange , red , majestic
When summer droughts have leave most Nipponese maples old-hat and quick to shed their foliage , Acer japonicumcultivars , with their heavier ramification and leaves , are still set on a dramatic performance . ‘Aconitifolium’is one of the good of the group with tumid , heavy lobed , gullible leaves that steal the show in fall . Starting out a rich , deep yellow , they move through orange to a vibrant Bolshevik and finally to purple . The combining of color and large , deeply part leave makes this upright tree seem larger than its 15- to 18 - foot stature . Its Japanese name is ‘ Mai kujaku ’ , which means “ dancing Inachis io . ”
‘Vitifolium’ Japanese Maple
Zones:5 to 8Height:20 to 30 feetSpring Color : Deep greenSummer Color : Deep greenFall Color : Gold , crimson
‘ Vitifolium’is anotherA. japonicumcultivar that is quite vigorous and catch up to 30 feet magniloquent . With its 5 - inch - long and 6 - column inch - wide green leaves , it micturate a majestic opinion .
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‘Osakazuki’ has an upright habit and great fall color. Photo/Illustration: Alan Mandell
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‘Waterfall’ summer color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroede
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Summer color of ‘Mikawa yatsubusa’Photo/Illustration: Barbara Murray
‘Mikawa yatsubusa’ fall color Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
Fall color on ‘Inaba shidare’. Photo/Illustration: Francie Schroeder
‘Inaba shidare’ summer color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
‘Aka shigitatsu sawa’ in summer. Photo/Illustration: Barbara Murray
‘Aka shigitatsu sawa’ fall color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
‘Shin deshojo’ in summer. Photo/Illustration: Barbara Murray
‘Shin deshojo’ fall color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
Fall color of ‘Seiryu’. Photo/Illustration: Francie Schroeder
Fall color of ‘Seiryu’. Photo/Illustration: Francie Schroeder.
Summer green of ‘Koto no ito’. Photo/Illustration: Barbara Murray
‘Koto no ito’ fall color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder.
Fall color of ‘Sango kaku’. Photo/Illustration: Michael Dirr.
‘Sango kaku’summer color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
‘Aconitifolium’ in the summer. Photo/Illustration: Melissa Lucas.
‘Aconitifolium’ fall color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
‘Vitifolium’ in autumn. Photo/Illustration: Michael Dirr.
‘Vitifolium’ spring color. Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Francie Schroeder
